SAR Essentials Store:
The Ten Essentials Plus

The ten essentials is a term first made popular
by The Mountaineers. They
promoted ten critical items that you should carry with you anytime you venture
into the woods. Over time several different lists have been developed and
additional items have been added. In the field of SAR, you not only are
worried about yourself, but also your teammates and the subject. It is
possible to spend a lot of money or very little in assembling these items.
To that end we have complied two different lists. One is the poor man's
version. This list is for people brand new to SAR and still not sure it is
their thing or simply someone with little cash reserves. The second list
is for those serious about SAR, hiking or camping, survival, or just like buying neat stuff. Just click
on the link to find out more information.*

You always need a detailed map. For SAR work, a 7.5 minute USGS map is the most common.
Next,
make sure you know how to read the map. Finally, if you get lost, lose the map, and staying put doesn't make
sense, then pick a bail-out
direction

Let me tell you about the hike that was
intended to last only a few hours in the daylight but then.... (Reading
trail signs from the light of a pager is a real bummer) You should also
add extra bulbs and extra batteries. New LED technology means you don't
have to carry extra bulbs. Even nearly dead batteries will still
produce useful light.

Included on the Mountaineers list because at high
altitudes you go snow-blind. A bad place to be blind. Make
sure glasses stop 99 percent of the UV light, if they don't they may
do more harm than good.

Motorola
TalkAbout -Ideal for either a command net to be operated among
base, or for intra-team communications off the main tactical
net. Also good for convoys to the search.

Finally the most important item to always bring
along: Common Sense. It is common sense
that teaches limits and the value of training. All the gear is
worthless without common sense. Which is priceless.